Even if the scale was off, those are two huge fish that could easily break the 10-pound barrier at this time of year.

'That was two days before my birthday and I figured that was a good early birthday present,' said Bishop, 38. 'It was probably the best day I've ever had in my life.'

Bishop released both fish but was tempted to keep the larger of the two.

'I could get both my fists all the way in his mouth and I could probably get one fist down his throat,' he said. 'It was unbelievable.'

No argument here. Catching one 10-pounder is rare enough. Journal Star records show only seven anglers have managed that feat in this area. Catching two 10-pounders in one outing has never been done.

The closest any angler has come was Dec. 4, 2004, when Brian Estes of Pekin caught bass that went 9-8 and 10-6. The largest was 25.5 inches long.

Prior to that you have to go back to June 19, 1970, when Harold 'Tuffy' Bowen of Farmington caught two lunkers weighing 18 pounds, 2 ounces (including a 25.5-incher that went 9-10).

Joining that list is heady stuff for Bishop, who had planned to go panfishing with buddy Frankie Cleaver of Pekin.

'We were really just looking for a place to catch big bluegill,' Bishop said.

They did catch a few bluegill in a small pond before plans changed.

'We were fishing with bobbers and waxworms and all the sudden I had a 2- to 3-pound bass on,' Bishop said. 'Right then we decided to try some of the other lakes for bass.'

Wise choice, though not easy to execute. The pair moved to a narrow, clear lake that required them to back their Tahoe into the water to launch a 14-foot john boat. That's one reason no boat had been in the lake in six years, Bishop said.

Cleaver's first cast with a Baby One Minus crankbait raised a 5-pound bass. Normally, that would earn bragging rights. Not this day. With his first cast of a Bandit Mistake crankbait, Bishop hooked a 26.5-inch lunker.

'Right away (Cleaver) said, ‘Dude, you've got to get that mounted,' ' Bishop said. 'But we had just started fishing and I didn't have anything to put it in. So I let it go.'

That was the easy one to release. The tougher decision came later, after fishing through wind, sleet and 49-degree water temperatures to one end of the lake. On the return trip, Bishop tried a neon green chatterbait with green blades and Cleaver used a white-and-green chatter frog.

'I told Frankie I didn't think these fish had ever seen a chatterbait,' Bishop said. 'He caught a couple nice bass and then I threw up into this cove and that's when I caught him.

'He hit so hard and was peeling line and took me straight to the bottom. I didn't know if this lake had muskie or what.'

About 15 minutes later, Bishop landed the 27.25-incher.

'I got it in and I couldn't believe it. My chest was pounding,' he said. 'And I thought Frankie was going to have a heart attack on me.'

With the bass in the boat, Bishop was tempted to leave.

'I told Frankie, if I keep this one we're putting the boat on the trailer and going straight home,' Bishop said. 'He was like, ‘No way. I don't have a 10-pounder yet and we aren't leaving.' '

Cleaver never caught a 10-pounder, though the pair did hook several more bass up to 4 pounds. As for Bishop, his tennis elbow started aching and he actually tired of catching fish.

'At that point I didn't care if I fished again,' he said. 'To have two bass like that in one day .?.?. I'm just an average bass fisherman, nothing special. But I know what I did.'

Unfortunately, Bishop has not been able to retrieve pictures from Cleaver's Nextel cell phone. Those who have seen the photos agree the bass are huge. And people who know Bishop say there's no way he would make up a fishing story. Even so, Bishop is eager to have copies in hand.

'I almost wish I'd kept the fish now,' he said. 'I've got to get those pictures.'

Surely that will be easier than catching two bass that big again. Last weekend, Bishop and Cleaver returned to the same lakes. Instead of windy, cloudy conditions they fished under sun — and struggled.

'I don't think we're going to go back until it's nasty again,' Bishop said. 'And I've got to tell you. A guy that fishes those lakes off the shore, he swears up and down that he got an 11½-pound bass out of there. And he said there's even bigger bass in the other lake.'

MOREL HUNTING:

Mushroom hunters need to show patience. While a few 'shroomers are locating small gray morels in central Illinois, experts agree the best is yet to come. Most say late next week will be a prime time to hit the timber.

Anyone who hunts state ground for morels is reminded they must wait until after 1 p.m. at sites that allow turkey hunting. That includes Jubilee College State Park, where 'shroomers must use parking lots or risk tickets.

Et cetera:

Monarch butterflies started arriving in southern Illinois early this week. .?.?. Visit prairiestateoutdoors.com to read all about

Jesse Tucker's five-bearded gobbler out of St. Clair County. .?.?. North Zone turkey harvest was 2,510 in the first season, up from 2,288 last year. Second season harvest is also ahead of last year's pace.